U.S. patent number 9,829,602 [Application Number 14/752,030] was granted by the patent office on 2017-11-28 for method and system for identifying and sampling hydrocarbons.
This patent grant is currently assigned to ExxonMobil Upstream Research Company. The grantee listed for this patent is William E. Bond, Robert J. Pottorf. Invention is credited to William E. Bond, Robert J. Pottorf.
United States Patent |
9,829,602 |
Bond , et al. |
November 28, 2017 |
Method and system for identifying and sampling hydrocarbons
Abstract
Method and system is described to exploration and development
hydrocarbon resources. The method involves operations for exploring
and developing hydrocarbons with one or more unmanned vehicles. The
unmanned vehicles are used to obtain one or more samples that may
be used to identify hydrocarbon systems, such as hydrocarbon
seeps.
Inventors: |
Bond; William E. (Spring,
TX), Pottorf; Robert J. (Houston, TX) |
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Bond; William E.
Pottorf; Robert J. |
Spring
Houston |
TX
TX |
US
US |
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Assignee: |
ExxonMobil Upstream Research
Company (Spring, TX)
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Family
ID: |
53776931 |
Appl.
No.: |
14/752,030 |
Filed: |
June 26, 2015 |
Prior Publication Data
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Document
Identifier |
Publication Date |
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US 20160018558 A1 |
Jan 21, 2016 |
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Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
Issue Date |
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62026449 |
Jul 18, 2014 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G01V
8/02 (20130101); G01V 9/007 (20130101); G01N
33/241 (20130101); G01N 33/1833 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
G01V
8/02 (20060101); G01V 9/00 (20060101); G01N
33/24 (20060101); G01N 33/18 (20060101) |
References Cited
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2478511 |
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Sep 2011 |
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GB |
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May 2005 |
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KR |
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101313546 |
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Oct 2013 |
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2007/008932 |
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WO |
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2013/148442 |
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Oct 2013 |
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WO |
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Primary Examiner: Porta; David
Assistant Examiner: Maupin; Hugh H
Attorney, Agent or Firm: ExxonMobil Upstream Research
Company Law Department
Parent Case Text
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent
Application 62/026,449 filed Jul. 18, 2014 entitled METHOD AND
SYSTEM FOR IDENTIFYING AND SAMPLING HYDROCARBONS, the entirety of
which is incorporated by reference herein.
Claims
The invention claimed is:
1. A method for identifying hydrocarbons comprising: transporting a
sampling assembly comprising a plurality of individual sample
containers on an unmanned vehicle to a potential location of
waterborne liquid hydrocarbons in a body of water, wherein the
unmanned vehicle is an unmanned surface vehicle (USV) and wherein
each of the sample containers has a sampling material disposed
around a spool within the sampling container; dispensing the
sampling material from the spool of one or more of the sample
containers and contacting the sampling material with the waterborne
liquid hydrocarbons; retrieving the sampling material having
adhered waterborne liquid hydrocarbons as an obtained sample into
the one or more sample containers on the unmanned vehicle; storing
the obtained sample in the sample container; and maintaining the
temperature within one or more of the sampling containers in the
sampling assembly in the range of between about -10.degree. C. and
about 10.degree. C.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein the temperature is maintained
within the range between about -5.degree. C. and about 10.degree.
C.
3. The method of claim 1, further comprising removing live microbes
from the obtained samples prior to determining whether the obtained
samples is associated with a hydrocarbon system.
4. The method of claim 1, further comprising searching for
waterborne liquid hydrocarbons in the body of water from the
potential location.
5. The method of claim 4, wherein searching for waterborne liquid
hydrocarbons comprises: performing a large pattern search from the
potential location, wherein the large pattern search comprises
detecting hydrocarbons; if hydrocarbons are detected, performing a
sampling pattern search to obtain the sample; and if hydrocarbons
are not detected, determining whether to continue the large pattern
search.
6. The method of claim 4, wherein searching for waterborne liquid
hydrocarbons comprises analyzing the surface of the body of water
to detect certain wavelengths to identify hydrocarbons.
7. The method of claim 4, wherein searching for waterborne liquid
hydrocarbons comprises: deploying a balloon above the unmanned
vehicle, wherein the balloon comprises infrared and visible light
detection components; obtaining infrared and visible light images;
and analyzing the infrared and visible light images to identify
hydrocarbons.
8. The method of claim 4, wherein searching for waterborne liquid
hydrocarbons comprises: deploying an unmanned aerial vehicle above
the unmanned vehicle, wherein the unmanned aerial vehicle comprises
visible and infrared light cameras; obtaining infrared and visible
light images with the unmanned aerial vehicle; and analyzing the
infrared and visible light images to identify hydrocarbons.
9. The method of claim 4, wherein searching for waterborne liquid
hydrocarbons comprises: deploying a unmarried aerial vehicle above
the unmanned vehicle; generating an ultraviolet light; obtaining
images with the unmanned aerial vehicle; and analyzing the
ultraviolet images to identify hydrocarbons.
10. A hydrocarbon identification system comprising: an unmanned
vehicle having a propulsion component, a communication component,
and a sample measurement component, wherein the propulsion
component is configured to maneuver the unmanned vehicle, the
sample measurement component is configured to obtain one or more
samples of a waterborne liquid hydrocarbons, and the communication
component is configured to communicate signals associated with the
obtained samples; wherein the unmanned vehicle is an unmanned
surface vehicle (USV); wherein the sample measurement component
comprises a sample assembly having a plurality of individual
sampling containers and wherein each of the sampling containers has
a sampling material disposed around a spool within the sampling
container; and wherein the unmanned vehicle has a heating and
cooling component configured to maintain the temperature within
each of the sampling containers within the range of between about
-10.degree. C. and about 10.degree. C.
11. The system of claim 10, wherein the unmanned vehicle is
configured to be controlled via a remote control
communications.
12. The system of claim 10, wherein the unmanned vehicle is
configured to be autonomously operated.
13. The system of claim 10, wherein each of the sampling containers
has buoyant weight coupled to the sampling material.
14. The system of claim 13, wherein each of the sampling containers
has a guide member disposed between the spool and buoyant
weight.
15. The system of claim 10, wherein the sampling assembly has
between 50 and 100 sampling containers.
16. The system of claim 10, wherein the sampling material is
TFE-fluorocarbon polymer screening fabric.
17. The system of claim 10, wherein the unmanned vehicle has a
hydrocarbon detection component configured to identify
hydrocarbons.
18. The system of claim 17, wherein the hydrocarbon detection
component comprises a receiver configured to receive images from
the surface of the body of water, and analyze the images to
identify certain wavelengths associated with hydrocarbons.
19. The system of claim 17, wherein the hydrocarbon detection
component comprises a balloon having an infrared and visible camera
and configured to: obtain infrared and visible light images from
the surface of the body of water; and an analyzer configured to
determine hydrocarbons from the infrared and visible light
images.
20. The system of claim 10, further comprising a deployment
unmanned vehicle having a deployment propulsion component, a
deployment communication component, a sample deployment component,
and a deployment measurement component, wherein the deployment
propulsion component is configured to maneuver the deployment
unmanned vehicle, the deployment measurement component is
configured to identify waterborne liquid hydrocarbons, the sample
deployment component is configured to deploy a sample container
into the identified waterborne liquid hydrocarbons, and the
deployment communication component is configured to communicate
signals associated with the operation of the deployment unmanned
vehicle.
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates generally to the field of hydrocarbon
exploration and development. Specifically, the invention relates to
operations for exploring and developing hydrocarbons (e.g., oil
and/or gas) with one or more remote vehicles.
BACKGROUND
Hydrocarbon reserves are becoming increasingly difficult to locate
and access, as the demand for energy grows globally. As a result,
various technologies are utilized to collect measurement data and
then to model the location of potential hydrocarbon accumulations.
The modeling may include factors, such as (1) the generation and
expulsion of liquid and/or gaseous hydrocarbons from a source rock,
(2) migration of hydrocarbons to an accumulation in a reservoir
rock, (3) a trap and a seal to prevent significant leakage of
hydrocarbons from the reservoir. The collection of data may be
beneficial in modeling potential locations for subsurface
hydrocarbon accumulations.
Typically, reflection seismic is the dominant technology for the
identification of hydrocarbon accumulations. This technique has
been successful in identifying structures that may host hydrocarbon
accumulations, and may also be utilized to image the hydrocarbon
fluids within subsurface accumulations as direct hydrocarbon
indicators (DHIs). However, this technology may lack the required
fidelity to provide accurate assessments of the presence and volume
of subsurface hydrocarbon accumulations due to poor imaging of the
subsurface, particularly with increasing depth where acoustic
impedance contrasts that cause DHIs are greatly diminished or
absent. Additionally, it is difficult to differentiate the presence
and types of hydrocarbons from other fluids in the subsurface by
such remote measurements.
Current geophysical, non-seismic hydrocarbon detection
technologies, such as potential field methods like gravity or
magnetics or the like, provide coarse geologic subsurface controls
by sensing different physical properties of rocks, but lack the
fidelity to identify hydrocarbon accumulations. These tools may
provide guidance on where in a basin seismic surveys should be
conducted, but do not significantly improve the ability to confirm
the presence of hydrocarbon seeps or subsurface hydrocarbon
accumulations. Further, other technologies may include a remote
vehicle to use optical sensing of an oil slick. See, e.g.,
Dalgleish, F. R. et al., Towards Persistent Real-Time Autonomous
Surveillance and Mapping of Surface Hydrocarbons. OTC 24241,
Houston: Offshore Technology Conference (2013). However, as such
techniques do not obtain a sample, these techniques do not
significantly enhance the ability to confirm the presence of
hydrocarbon seeps or subsurface hydrocarbon accumulations.
Yet another technique may include monitoring hydrocarbon seep
locations as an indicator of subsurface hydrocarbon accumulations.
See, e.g., ASTM International, Standard Practices for Sampling of
Waterborne Oils. D4489-95 (Reapproved 2011). However, these
techniques are limited as well. These techniques may include remote
monitoring to identify possible waterborne oil (e.g., oil slick)
locations. This may be performed with satellite or airborne imaging
of sea surface slicks. Then, a marine vessel can be deployed with a
manned crew to determine the location of the slick and to obtain
samples. However, the deployment of a marine vessel may be time
consuming and expensive to deploy to the various locations.
Further, the deployment may not be able to locate the oil slick.
That is, the oil slick may have dissipated or moved to a different
location as a result of changes in conditions, such as currents
and/or wind. As such, conventional techniques are problematic and
costly.
As a result, an enhancement to exploration and development
techniques is needed. In particular, the exploration techniques
used to locate potential seafloor seeps of hydrocarbons in a more
accurate and cost-effective manner over conventional techniques are
desired. These techniques may efficiently obtain samples from
waterborne liquid hydrocarbons for indicators of a working
hydrocarbon system in exploration areas, which may then be used to
enhance basin assessment and to high-grade areas for further
exploration.
SUMMARY
In one or more embodiments, a method for identifying hydrocarbons
is described. The method may include obtaining a potential location
of waterborne liquid hydrocarbons in a body of water using remote
sensing data; directing an unmanned vehicle (e.g., UAV or USV) to
the potential location; and obtaining a sample of the waterborne
liquid hydrocarbons with the unmanned vehicle. The method may
include performing remote sensing (e.g., synthetic aperture radar
(SAR)) in a survey area to identify the potential location of
waterborne liquid hydrocarbons.
Further, in one or more embodiments, a method for identifying
hydrocarbons is described. The method includes transporting one or
more sample containers on an unmanned vehicle to a potential
location of waterborne liquid hydrocarbons in a body of water;
contacting sampling material from one of the one or more sample
containers with the waterborne liquid hydrocarbons; retrieving the
sampling material having adhered waterborne liquid hydrocarbons as
an obtained sample into one of the one or more sample containers on
the unmanned vehicle; and storing the obtained sample in the sample
container.
A hydrocarbon identification system is described. The hydrocarbon
identification system may include an unmanned vehicle having a
propulsion component, a communication component and a sample
measurement component. The propulsion component may be configured
to maneuver the unmanned vehicle, while the sample measurement
component may be configured to obtain one or more samples for the
waterborne liquid hydrocarbons and the communication component is
configured to communicate signals associated with the obtained
samples. The unmanned vehicle may be configured to be controlled
via remote control communications or to be autonomously operated.
Also, the unmanned vehicle may have a heating and cooling component
configured to maintain the temperature within each of the sampling
containers within a specified range; a control unit configured to
communicate with the propulsion component to perform a large
pattern search to detect hydrocarbons in an automated manner; and a
hydrocarbon detection component configured to identify
hydrocarbons.
In some of the embodiments, the method and system may include
various enhancements. For example, the method may also include
storing the sample comprises managing the temperature within the
one of the one or more sample containers on the unmanned vehicle,
wherein the temperature is maintained with the range between about
-10.degree. C. and about 10.degree. C. Further, the method may
include removing live microbes from the obtained samples prior to
determining whether the obtained sample is associated with a
hydrocarbon system.
Further, in some other embodiments, the method or system may
include another unmanned vehicle. For example, the method may
include transporting one or more sample containers (e.g., container
having sampling material) on a deployment unmanned vehicle (e.g.,
UAV or USV) to a potential location of waterborne liquid
hydrocarbons in a body of water; contacting sampling material from
one of the one or more sample containers with the waterborne liquid
hydrocarbons; retrieving the sampling material having adhered
waterborne liquid hydrocarbons as an obtained sample into one of
the one or more sample containers on the unmanned vehicle; and
storing the obtained sample in the sample container on the unmanned
vehicle. The sample container may be configured to: seal the
sampling material within the sample container if hydrocarbons are
not detected; unseal the sample container to provide interaction
between the sampling material and the waterborne liquid
hydrocarbons in a body of water when hydrocarbons are detected.
Moreover, in some embodiments, deployment unmanned vehicle and
retrieval unmanned vehicle may be used. The deployment unmanned
vehicle may have a deployment propulsion component, a deployment
communication component, a sample deployment component and a
deployment measurement component, wherein the deployment propulsion
component is configured to maneuver the deployment unmanned
vehicle, the deployment measurement component is configured to
identify waterborne liquid hydrocarbons, the sample deployment
component is configured to deploy a sample container into the
identified waterborne liquid hydrocarbons, and the deployment
communication component is configured to communicate signals
associated with the operation of the deployment unmanned vehicle.
The retrieval unmanned vehicle may include similar components along
with a sample measurement component that is configured to retrieve
the sample container.
Further still, in one or more embodiment, satellite-acquired,
near-real time synthetic aperture radar (SAR) is used to guide one
or more unmanned surface vehicles (USVs) to collect samples of
waterborne oil emanating from natural hydrocarbon seeps for further
analysis. The further analysis may be performed on the USV and/or
at an onshore laboratory. The lab analyses of the collected samples
may include gas chromatography and mass spectrometry analyses. The
USV may be configured for deployments for extended periods of time.
For example, the deployment may be for a time period of
three-months or more. The speed that the USV may move may include
speeds greater than 3.5 knots (kn). The USV may be configured to
collect different numbers of samples. For example, the USV may be
configured to collect 50 to 100 individual samples of waterborne
oil during its deployment.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The foregoing and other advantages of the present disclosure may
become apparent upon reviewing the following detailed description
and drawings of non-limiting examples of embodiments.
FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of a seafloor, body of water and
air above the body of water.
FIG. 2 is a flow chart for using remote sensing along with an
unmanned vehicle to perform hydrocarbon exploration in accordance
with an exemplary embodiment of the present techniques.
FIG. 3 is a diagram for using remote sensing with an unmanned
surface vehicle to perform hydrocarbon identification in accordance
with an exemplary embodiment of the present techniques.
FIG. 4 is a diagram of an exemplary search pattern in accordance
with an exemplary embodiment of the present techniques.
FIG. 5 is a diagram of an exemplary sample container in accordance
with an exemplary embodiment of the present techniques.
FIG. 6 is a diagram of an exemplary sample container having a motor
drive in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present
techniques.
FIG. 7 is a diagram of an exemplary sample container configuration
having a motor drive for the spool in accordance with an exemplary
embodiment of the present techniques.
FIG. 8 is a diagram of an exemplary sample assembly having multiple
sample containers in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the
present techniques.
FIG. 9 is a diagram of an exemplary unmanned vehicle in accordance
with an exemplary embodiment of the present techniques.
FIG. 10 is a diagram of an exemplary sample assembly and cooling
and heating component in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of
the present techniques.
FIG. 11 is a block diagram of a computer system that may be used to
perform any of the methods disclosed herein.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
In the following detailed description section, the specific
embodiments of the present disclosure are described in connection
with preferred embodiments. However, to the extent that the
following description is specific to a particular embodiment or a
particular use of the present disclosure, this is intended to be
for exemplary purposes only and simply provides a description of
the exemplary embodiments. Accordingly, the disclosure is not
limited to the specific embodiments described below, but rather, it
includes all alternatives, modifications, and equivalents falling
within the true spirit and scope of the appended claims.
Various terms as used herein are defined below. To the extent a
term used in a claim is not defined below, it should be given the
broadest definition persons in the pertinent art have given that
term as reflected in at least one printed publication or issued
patent.
To begin, a seep is a natural surface leak of hydrocarbons (e.g.,
gas and/or oil). The hydrocarbon (e.g., petroleum) reaches the
surface of the Earth's crust along fractures, faults,
unconformities, or bedding planes, or is exposed by surface erosion
into porous rock. The presence of a hydrocarbon seep at the
seafloor or sea surface indicates that three basic geological
conditions critical to petroleum exploration have been fulfilled.
First, organic-rich rocks have been deposited and preserved (i.e.
source presence). Second, the source has been heated and matured
(i.e., source maturity). Third, secondary migration has taken place
(i.e., hydrocarbon migration from the source location). While a
surface seep of thermogenic hydrocarbons does not ensure that
material subsurface oil and gas accumulations exist, seeps provide
a mechanism to de-risk elements of an exploration play. That is,
the seep may be utilized to remove uncertainty from the modeling of
the subsurface and exploration operations.
Knowledge of the characteristics of naturally seeping hydrocarbons
in marine environments can enhance exploration for oil and gas
fields. As natural hydrocarbon seeps may result in a thin layer of
waterborne liquid hydrocarbons (e.g., oil slicks) forming on the
surface of the body of water, these waterborne liquid hydrocarbons
may be identified on the surface of a body of water. If samples
from the waterborne liquid hydrocarbons are properly collected,
stored, and transported to a laboratory, then the samples can be
analyzed to determine characteristics of the seeping hydrocarbons.
The problem is that naturally occurring waterborne liquid
hydrocarbons are difficult to inexpensively locate and sample with
current methods. The conventional practice of sampling a slick
requires the use of a manned marine vessel on which personnel
visually locate the oil slick and then use hydrophobic fabric or
netting to manually collect a sample. See, e.g., American Standards
and Testing Association's Standard Practice D4489. This sampling
approach is expensive because it involves lengthy deployments to
collect samples due to the episodic nature of seeps, expense of
personnel to operate the marine vessel, numerous sources of false
positives, and the difficulty in visually locating oil slicks.
Additionally, unfavorable lighting, weather, or sea conditions can
make visually locating a slick very unlikely. Further still, many
of the exploration locations of interest are in frontier areas of
the oceans or seas, which are long distances from major ports and
marine vessels (e.g., vessels of opportunity). The remote nature of
these exploration locations increases the cost of the required
manned vessel operations.
In the present disclosure, an enhancement to hydrocarbon
identification and exploration techniques involves an enhanced
unmanned vessel that is used to collect samples. The unmanned
vessel may concurrently perform remote sensing over a region to
identify potential waterborne liquid hydrocarbon locations and
collect samples from the waterborne liquid hydrocarbon with the
unmanned vehicle (UV), such as an unmanned surface vehicle (USV)
and/or unmanned airborne vehicle (UAV). The concurrent operations
include obtaining and transmitting the remote sensing data or
information derived from the remote sensing data to one or more
unmanned vehicles, wherein one of the unmanned vehicles is deployed
to the waterborne liquid hydrocarbon location for sampling
operations. In the present techniques, the remote sensing data is
acquired, interpreted and communicated in near real-time. The term,
"near real-time", means that information is obtained, processed,
and acted upon prior to UV deployment (e.g., one or two weeks prior
to UV deployment) and/or during the UV deployment. The term
includes time delay between the acquisition of the remote sensing
data and the time at which such data can be acted upon. The
transmitted waterborne liquid hydrocarbon location may be used to
guide the UV to the location of the suspected waterborne liquid
hydrocarbons for sampling.
Beneficially, such techniques provide enhancements over
conventional approaches. For example, as waterborne liquid
hydrocarbon information is typically not obtained for a regional
scale and not appropriately evaluated or sampled in the context of
integrated hydrocarbon systems, the ability to identify and
characterize seeps and thermogenic hydrocarbons provides
enhancements for evaluating and capturing hydrocarbon reserves. The
present techniques provide a method to locate seafloor hydrocarbon
seeps accurately and cost-effectively over the play to basin scale
(e.g., 1,000's to 100,000's square kilometers (km.sup.2)) as a
means to enhance basin assessment and to high-grade areas for
exploration. This method overcomes conventional failures in
frontier hydrocarbon exploration, which are associated with the
inability to fully evaluate, understand, and appropriately risk the
hydrocarbon system components. Also, the present techniques
combined remote sensing with UV sampling created a less expensive
means of identifying and evaluating waterborne liquid
hydrocarbons.
In one or more embodiments, the method utilizes a combination of
satellite and/or airborne remote sensing techniques along with an
unmanned vehicle to characterize and map hydrocarbons in a marine
environment in concurrent operations. The combination of remote
sensing techniques along with unmanned vehicle that obtains samples
provides a more complete characterization and mapping of
hydrocarbons in the marine environment over play to basin scale
exploration areas.
The remote sensing (e.g., satellite and/or airborne) may include
synthetic aperture radar (SAR) along with other techniques. Remote
sensing involves obtaining measurements from a distance of over
1000 feet from the body of water. As an example, remote sensing
refers to the use of sensors mounted on satellites orbiting the
earth to acquire synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images and/or other
types of data that indicate the presence of naturally occurring
waterborne liquid hydrocarbons. The remote sensing data may be
integrated with other data to further enhance the process. For
example, the remote sensing data may be combined with marine
measurement data, which may be provided from a marine vessel (e.g.,
vessels performing other duties such as seismic and acoustic
imaging, multibeam echosounder, side-scan sonar, sub-bottom
profiler; magnetic and gravity surveying).
The sampling is performed by an unmanned vehicle (UV), such as an
unmanned surface vehicle (USV) or unmanned airborne vehicle (UAV).
The UV may include autonomous control or be remotely operated. The
UV may include one or more modules configured to sample waterborne
liquid hydrocarbons and/or to detect chemical or physical anomalies
that are indicative of hydrocarbon seeps. For example, the UV may
include a detection module, sampling module, propulsion module and
communication module.
Beneficially, the present techniques provide a pre-drill technology
that may determine the presence and location of thermogenic
hydrocarbon seepages from the seafloor. Further, this method may be
utilized to locate seafloor hydrocarbon seeps from slicks in a
cost-effective manner over conventional approaches. As a result,
this process provides geoscientists with an enhanced identification
and/or verification technique for hydrocarbon systems. Various
aspects of the present techniques are described further in FIGS. 1
to 11.
FIG. 1 is a diagram 100 illustrating the numerous subsurface
sources and migration pathways of hydrocarbons present at or
escaping from seeps on the ocean floor 101 and the method of
detecting the resulting waterborne liquid hydrocarbons via a remote
sensing unit 140 and unmanned vehicle 142. Hydrocarbons 102
generated at source rock (not shown) migrate upward through faults
and fractures 104. The migrating hydrocarbons may be trapped in
reservoir rock and form a hydrocarbon accumulation, such as a gas
106, oil and gas 108, or a gas hydrate accumulation 110.
Hydrocarbons seeping from the gas hydrate accumulation may dissolve
into methane and higher hydrocarbons (e.g., ethane, propane) in the
ocean 112 as shown at 114, or may remain as a gas hydrate on the
ocean floor 101 as shown at 116. Alternatively, oil or gas from
oil/gas reservoir 108 may seep into the ocean, as shown at 118, and
form waterborne liquid hydrocarbons 120 on the ocean surface 122. A
bacterial mat 124 may form at a gas seep location, leaking from gas
reservoir 106, and may generate biogenic hydrocarbon gases while
degrading thermogenic wet gas. Still another process of hydrocarbon
seepage is via a mud volcano 126, which can form waterborne liquid
hydrocarbons 128 on the ocean surface. Waterborne liquid
hydrocarbons 120 and 128 or methane gas 130 (and e.g., ethane,
propane, etc.) emitted therefrom are signs of hydrocarbon seepage
that are, in turn, signs of possible subsurface hydrocarbon
accumulation. The signatures measured from each of these seeps may
be analyzed according to disclosed methodologies and techniques
herein to discriminate between the different origins of
hydrocarbons encountered at these seeps. In particular,
methodologies and techniques disclosed herein may discriminate
between hydrocarbons that have migrated directly to the surface
without encountering a trap within which they can be accumulated
(e.g., a first source) and hydrocarbons that have leaked from a
subsurface accumulation (e.g., a second source). If the presence
and volume of such a hydrocarbon accumulation can be identified, it
is possible the hydrocarbons from such an accumulation can be
extracted.
To enhance the exploration of hydrocarbons, the diagram 100
includes the remote sensing unit 140 and unmanned vehicle 142. In
this diagram 100, the remote sensing unit 140 is a satellite that
is collecting data regarding the ocean surface 122. The remote
sensing unit 140 is utilized to process the acquired data and
provide an indication of identified waterborne liquid hydrocarbons,
such as waterborne liquid hydrocarbons 120 and 128. Then, the
locations of these waterborne liquid hydrocarbons are communicated
to the unmanned vehicle 142, which is an unmanned surface vehicle
(USV) in this diagram 100. The unmanned vehicle 142 may then move
to a location near each of the waterborne liquid hydrocarbons 120
and 128 to obtain samples of the hydrocarbons in the waterborne
liquid hydrocarbons. These samples may be stored and then analyzed
to determine if the waterborne liquid hydrocarbons are associated
with hydrocarbons seeps.
As may be appreciated, natural seepage is often episodic, which
makes the collection of a waterborne oil sample difficult. A
satellite image may indicate the likely presence of waterborne
liquid hydrocarbons, but at a later time period (e.g., hours later)
the waterborne liquid hydrocarbons may have dissipated and be
undetectable upon arrival. Sometimes an area over a few square
kilometers may have fairly consistent seepage, but the precise
locations of the seeping origins and their waterborne liquid
hydrocarbons may vary due to the environmental conditions.
As a result, the waterborne liquid hydrocarbons identified by
satellite may be sporadic and not have a continuous presence for
any considerable length of time. The UV provides the ability to
confirm the presence of waterborne liquid hydrocarbons at its
location with some confidence. Without this ability, there is a
high likelihood that a vast majority of the samples collected may
contain no significant amount of hydrocarbons. As such, the UV may
have to spend considerable amounts of time searching in potential
seepage locations.
To assist the UV, remote sensing may be utilized, such as SAR
technology. SAR images may be obtained for substantial amounts of
the area of interest at different intervals. For example, the
intervals may be two days, although the frequency of acquisition,
resolution of images, and size and location of images may be
adjusted for different applications. Once analyzed, commands are
issued to the UV, as appropriate, based at least partially on the
information obtained from the SAR images. The method associated
with this is further described in FIG. 2.
FIG. 2 is a flow chart 200 for using remote sensing along with an
unmanned vehicle to perform hydrocarbon exploration in accordance
with an exemplary embodiment of the present techniques. In this
flow chart 200, various blocks relate to performing remote sensing
for a region of interest, such as blocks 202 to 210, which may be
referred to as a remote sensing stage. Other blocks involve
searching for the waterborne liquid hydrocarbons in a searching
stage, as shown in blocks 212 to 216, and sampling the waterborne
liquid hydrocarbons, such as blocks 218 to 220, which may be
referred to as a sampling stage. Finally, blocks 222 to 230 relate
to other operations and the use of the sampled data for the
hydrocarbon exploration.
The remote sensing stage is described in blocks 202 to 210. At
block 202, a region of interest is identified. The identification
of a region of interest may include performing various operations
prior to deployment of the UV via remote sensing. The remote
sensing survey may include satellite imagery and airborne surveys.
The remote sensing techniques may include synthetic aperture radar
(SAR) images and/or other types of data that indicate the presence
of naturally occurring waterborne liquid hydrocarbons. For example,
remote sensing data may be obtained and analyzed. This may involve
reviewing available SAR data from an area of interest. This
information may be used to identify areas of interest that have a
higher probability of having seeps. Then, additional SAR or other
data for the area of interest, such as wind direction and velocity
for calculating potential movements of the surface hydrocarbons
over time, may be analyzed to further refine and verify the
locations that potentially include waterborne liquid hydrocarbons.
At block 204, a plan for acquisition of remote sensing data during
the UV deployment is developed. The UV deployment plan is developed
after reviewing the obtained data. This may involve planning to
acquire additional concurrent data for the area of interest, which
is prior to UV deployment and continuing for the duration of the UV
deployment. At block 206, acquire and interpret the remote sensing
data during the UV deployment. The remote sensing data (e.g., SAR
data) may be obtained prior to and/or concurrently with the UV
deployment operations. At block 208, the UV may be transported by a
deployment vessel. The deployment vessel may include a marine
vessel or an airborne vessel that is capable of transporting the UV
to a location in or near the body of water. Then, at block 210, the
UV is deployed to the body of water. The deployment of the UV may
include preparing the UV for operations and beginning the
operations of the UV.
Once deployed, the searching for the waterborne liquid hydrocarbons
in a searching stage is performed in blocks 212 to 216. The UV
obtains a potential location for waterborne liquid hydrocarbons, as
shown in block 212. The potential communication of the waterborne
liquid hydrocarbons location may be directly to the unmanned
vehicle and/or may be with a control unit that communicates with
the unmanned vehicle. The control unit may be located on a marine
vessel, airborne vessel or land-based location that communicates
with the unmanned vehicle. Further, the communication of the
location of the waterborne liquid hydrocarbons may include
directional information, global positioning system coordinates
and/or other suitable information to indicate the location of the
waterborne liquid hydrocarbons on the ocean. At block 214, the
unmanned vehicle performs a hydrocarbon identification search
pattern for the potential waterborne liquid hydrocarbons. The
search pattern may include moving the unmanned vehicle to the
potential waterborne liquid hydrocarbons location, which may be one
of various potential waterborne liquid hydrocarbons location
identified from the remote sensing stage. Once at the location, a
search pattern may be performed to locate the waterborne liquid
hydrocarbons. As part of performing search, the UV may utilize one
or more measurement components (e.g., hydrocarbon sensors) to
locate the waterborne liquid hydrocarbons. For example, the sensors
may include using a flourometer to identify the hydrocarbons,
analyzing the water to detect certain wavelengths; and/or deploying
a balloon above the UV to obtain and analyze infrared and visible
light data to identify hydrocarbons; and/or deploying an unmanned
aerial vehicle (UAV) with cameras or other sensors to identify
hydrocarbons over a broad area. The use of the flourometer may
include pumping surface compounds from the body of water (sea water
and hydrocarbons) through a flourometer to identify hydrocarbons.
The analysis of certain wavelengths may include receiving and
analyzing signals from the surface of the body of water to detect
certain wavelengths, which are utilized to identify hydrocarbons.
The use of the balloon may include deploying a balloon above the
unmanned vehicle, wherein the balloon has infrared and visible
light detection components; obtaining infrared and visible light
images for the region around the UV and analyzing the infrared and
visible light images to identify hydrocarbons. The UAV may have
active ultra-violet sensors that are configured to excite aromatic
compounds in hydrocarbons and to detect resulting fluorescence
emissions from the surface of the slick. The UAV may also have
visible and infrared light cameras that can be used to investigate
larger areas around the USV to locate slicks. Then, the UV may
verify any identified hydrocarbons, as shown in block 216. The
identification of hydrocarbons may be based on an indication from
hydrocarbon sensors during the hydrocarbon identification search
pattern, performing additional sensing operations and/or two or
more indications from the hydrocarbon sensors. This verification
may include performing a sequence of operations by the unmanned
vehicle with two or more hydrocarbon sensors.
Once the searching stage has identified waterborne liquid
hydrocarbons, the sampling stage may be performed in blocks 218 and
220. At block 218, the unmanned vehicle may obtain one or more
samples of waterborne liquid hydrocarbons. As may be appreciated,
the operation of the unmanned vehicle, which may be automated, may
include various processes that repeat during the sample collection
operations (e.g., period of time that the unmanned vehicle is
obtaining samples). The unmanned vehicle may obtain samples at the
potential waterborne liquid hydrocarbon location. For example, the
unmanned vehicle may utilize the measurement components, such as
one or more modules to obtain samples and a process control unit to
manage the acquisition of the samples, calculate operational and
sample parameters, determine adjustments to the operation of the
unmanned vehicle and determine if additional samples should be
obtained. Exemplary measurement components are described further
below. Then, the samples may be stored in the UV, as shown in block
220. The storage of the samples may include storing the samples in
individual compartments, which are isolated from each other to
lessen any cross contamination. Exemplary techniques to store of
the samples are described further below. At block 222, a
determination is made whether the sample collection operations is
complete. The determination may include obtaining a specific number
of samples. Alternatively, as the samples may include different
information, the determination may include analyzing one or more of
the samples on the unmanned vehicle via respective measurement
equipment to determine if additional samples should be obtained. If
the sample collection operations are not complete, the process may
continue with the UV obtaining another potential waterborne liquid
hydrocarbon location, as shown in block 212.
However, if the operations are complete, the unmanned vehicle may
be recaptured or redeployed to another potential waterborne liquid
hydrocarbons location, as shown in block 224. The recapture and
redeployment of the unmanned vehicle may include transmitting the
location of the deployment vessel for retrieval or having the UV
return to a specific location, which may be stored in memory on the
unmanned vehicle.
Then, at block 226, the obtained samples may be analyzed. The
analysis of the samples may include providing the samples to a
laboratory to perform the analysis, performing the analysis on a
marine vessel that deploys the unmanned vehicle, and/or obtaining
results from the unmanned vehicle after it performs the analysis.
The analysis (which may be in a laboratory or onboard a deployment
vessel) using fluorometry, gas chromatography (GC), and/or other
GC-MS (mass spectrometry)-MS or GC-GC time of flight mass
spectrometry or additional techniques to obtain biomarkers and
other indicators of hydrocarbon source facies and thermal maturity.
In particular, this method may include determining the presence and
estimating information, such as depth, type, quality, volume and
location, about a subsurface hydrocarbon accumulation from the
measured data from the samples acquired by the unmanned vehicle.
The samples may be subjected to three independent analysis
technologies, such as clumped isotope geochemistry, noble gas
geochemistry, and microbiology. These may each be utilized to
provide additional information about the depth, fluid type (oil vs.
gas) and quality, and volume of subsurface hydrocarbon
accumulations. That is, the method may integrate existing and new
biological and geochemical indicators to provide insights in
opportunity identification. In addition, the integration of these
biological and geochemical indicators with geological/geophysical
contextual knowledge with the other geological and measurement data
further provides enhancements to hydrocarbon opportunity
identification. These analysis techniques are described in Intl.
Patent Application Pub. Nos. 2013119350; 2013148442; and
2013070304.
In one or more embodiments, the sampling operations may also lessen
contamination by removing live microbes from the obtained samples.
The removal of microbes may involve spraying the sample with a
compound that kills the microbes as it is being retrieved or once
the sample is within the compartment. This configuration may
include a pump and nozzle disposed within each sampling container.
Alternatively, sampling material may include a compound that kills
living microbes captured by the sampling material.
In addition, with the obtained samples, the unmanned vehicle may
also obtain other measurement data, such as camera images,
temperature data, mass spectrometric data, conductivity data,
fluorometric data, and/or polarization data, for example. The data
can be in the format of images, raw data with specific format for
the component, text files, and/or any combination of the different
types. Other sensors may include functionality to provide chemical
specificity of applied sensors (e.g., mass spectrometry). These
sensors may discriminate thermogenic hydrocarbons, which may be
preferred, from biogenic hydrocarbons and may determine whether the
seep is associated with gas, oil, or a combination of gas and
oil.
With the obtained samples, hydrocarbon locations may be modeled
based on the analysis of the samples, as shown in block 228. The
analysis of the samples may be integrated with other data to
enhance or verify a subsurface model. As an example, the sample
analysis data may be organized with the location of the unmanned
vehicle or another location to correlate the sample analysis data
with other measurements or models of the subsurface geology. That
is, different types of data may be integrated based on location
information associated with the respective data to enhance the
exploration operations. For example, sample analysis data may be
integrated with seismic, gravity, and magnetic data that have been
combined to create subsurface models of the geology and hydrocarbon
system in a region. The subsurface models are further enhanced by
the results of microbial ecology, clumped isotopes, and noble gas
signatures from samples acquired by the unmanned vehicle.
Finally, as shown in block 230, the hydrocarbon exploration is
performed at least partially based on the obtained sample analysis.
The hydrocarbon exploration may include analyzing the obtained
sample to determine whether the waterborne liquid hydrocarbons are
associated with a thermogenic or biogenic hydrocarbon system,
obtaining additional measurement data associated with the
waterborne liquid hydrocarbons, determining a location for
hydrocarbons based at least partially on the waterborne liquid
hydrocarbons, designating a drilling location for discovery of
hydrocarbons based on the analysis of the sample. The determination
of a location for hydrocarbons may include analyzing the sample
analysis data to determine one or more of the hydrocarbon
accumulation type, quality, depth and volume obtained from the
microbial ecology, clumped isotope and noble gas signatures and/or
these data integrated with the geological and geophysical data. The
hydrocarbon exploration may include drilling a well to provide
access to the hydrocarbon accumulation. Further, the exploration
operations may also include installing a production facility
configured to monitor and produce hydrocarbons from the production
intervals that provide access to the subsurface formation. The
production facility may include one or more units to process and
manage the flow of production fluids, such as hydrocarbons and/or
water, from the formation. To access the production intervals, the
production facility may be coupled to a tree and various control
valves via a control umbilical, production tubing for passing
fluids from the tree to the production facility, control tubing for
hydraulic or electrical devices, and a control cable for
communicating with other devices within the wellbore.
Beneficially, the sample analysis data provides an enhancement in
the exploration of hydrocarbons. In particular, the method may be
utilized prior to drilling operations to reduce exploration risk by
providing more information about the waterborne liquid
hydrocarbons. As a result, this method provides a cost-effective
technique to enhance basin assessment and/or to high-grade areas
for hydrocarbon exploration. The sample analysis data may be
integrated with seismic, gravity, magnetics, and acoustic data from
surface surveys to provide an enhanced method to locate seafloor
seeps of thermogenic hydrocarbons cost-effectively over large
areas.
As yet another enhancement, the present techniques may involve the
use of two or more unmanned vehicle. For example, one or more
sample containers may be transported on a first or deployment
unmanned vehicle (e.g., UAV or USV) to a potential location of
waterborne liquid hydrocarbons in a body of water. The deployment
unmanned vehicle may use the hydrocarbon identification techniques,
noted above, to determine the location of the waterborne liquid
hydrocarbons. Once identified, the deployment unmanned vehicle may
drop, lower, launch or otherwise dispose one or more sample
containers into the waterborne liquid hydrocarbons. Then, the
sampling material may contact the waterborne liquid hydrocarbons.
Then, the sampling material, which has adhered waterborne liquid
hydrocarbons, is retrieved on a second or retrieval unmanned
vehicle (e.g., UAV or USV). The retrieval unmanned vehicle may be
used to store the obtained samples, which may involve the storing
of the samples by managing the temperature (with the range between
about -10.degree. C. and about 10.degree. C.) within the sample
containers on the retrieval unmanned vehicle. The sample containers
may be retrieved via a hook and reel configuration, magnet or other
suitable retrieval method.
In this configuration, the sample containers may include various
configurations. For example, the sample containers may include
sample material, as noted above, along with a spool or may include
other configurations. For example, the sample container may be a
canister that has the sampling material sealed within the
canister's housing. The sample container may include sensor or
active component that is utilized to detect the presence of
hydrocarbons. For instance, the sample container may be configured
to: seal the sampling material within the sample container if
hydrocarbons are not detected; and unseal the sample container to
provide interaction between the sampling material and the
waterborne liquid hydrocarbons in a body of water when hydrocarbons
are detected. Further, the sealing and unsealing operation may also
be configured to be on a timer, remote activated and other such
techniques. In particular, the sample container may be configured
to seal the canister after a set period of time once the canister
has been unsealed.
To locate the sample containers for retrieval, the sample
containers and the retrieval unmanned vehicle may include locating
components. That is, the sample containers may include a locating
beacon (e.g., an audible notification or other such communication
equipment) and the retrieval unmanned vehicle may be configured to
detect and navigate to the locating beacon.
As an example, the deployment unmanned vehicle may have a
deployment propulsion component, a deployment communication
component, a sample deployment component and a deployment
measurement component, wherein the deployment propulsion component
is configured to maneuver the deployment unmanned vehicle, the
deployment measurement component is configured to identify
waterborne liquid hydrocarbons, the sample deployment component is
configured to deploy a sample container into the identified
waterborne liquid hydrocarbons, and the deployment communication
component is configured to communicate signals associated with the
operation of the deployment unmanned vehicle. To manage the
temperature of the samples, the deployment unmanned vehicle may
include a heating and cooling component configured to maintain the
temperature within the sampling container within a specified
range.
Further, mapping of waterborne liquid hydrocarbon locations may be
useful for locating survey areas for acquisition of other survey
data. The waterborne liquid hydrocarbons locations, which are
determined to be associated with an active hydrocarbon system, may
be useful to further assist collection or verification from other
technologies. Accordingly, this integrated method may be utilized
to further enhance the exploration activities.
FIG. 3 is a diagram 300 for using remote sensing with an unmanned
surface vehicle to perform hydrocarbon identification in accordance
with an exemplary embodiment of the present techniques. This
example may also be used for a UAV, as well. In this diagram 300, a
control unit on the deployment vessel or at a control center may
communicate with the unmanned surface vehicle (USV) to perform the
waterborne liquid hydrocarbon identification. The control unit
functionality is shown in blocks 302 to 310, while the USV's
functionality is shown in blocks 312 to 316.
For the control unit on the deployment vessel or at a control
center, control logic, as shown in block 302, may be utilized to
obtain information from various sources, such as USV feedback data
in block 304 and waterborne liquid hydrocarbons alert data in block
306; and determine whether to send the USV to another waypoint, as
shown in block 308, or maintain the USV in the current mode by
remaining idle, as shown in block 310.
For the input data, the waterborne liquid hydrocarbons alert data
may include satellite images that are acquired and analyzed
concurrently with the USV deployment. If waterborne liquid
hydrocarbons are detected, notifications or alerts regarding any
potential waterborne liquid hydrocarbons may be communicated to the
control unit or the USV. The location and/or outlines of the
waterborne liquid hydrocarbons may be provided in the form of
geo-referenced shape files. Then, the location and outlines may be
analyzed to determine if the USV should be deployed to the
location. The determination may include analysis of the waterborne
liquid hydrocarbons outline in context with other data and previous
waterborne liquid hydrocarbons indications, and a decision is made
on whether or not to target the recently identified waterborne
liquid hydrocarbons. The USV feedback data may include updates on
the location and/or mode of operation for a specific USV.
After a decision is made to target a suspected waterborne liquid
hydrocarbon location, a new or updated waypoint is relayed to the
USV, as shown in block 308. The instruction to the USV to may
include transmitting an updated waypoint, along with specific
speed. The speed information may be useful because of the temporal
variation of many seeps. The USV may initially be placed into a
"loitering mode", as shown in block 312. The "loitering mode" may
involve energy supply conservation operations. This may involve the
USV remaining idle until another waterborne liquid hydrocarbon
location is provided. Once a waterborne liquid hydrocarbon location
is provided, the USV may enter into a "transiting mode", as shown
in block 314. The "transiting mode" may involve the USV traveling
to the waterborne liquid hydrocarbon location. The speed that the
USV travels may be based on the speed information.
Once the USV arrives at the indicated location, the USV enters
"waterborne liquid hydrocarbon detection mode", as shown in block
316. In "waterborne liquid hydrocarbon detection mode", the USV
performs a spiral search pattern, increasing in radius away from
the initial waypoint. The hydrocarbon search radius may be around
500 meter (m), with each subsequent radii increasing by about 500 m
per rotation. After the USV reaches a radius of perhaps 2
kilometers (km), this pattern is ended or repeated, as appropriate.
To detect the waterborne liquid hydrocarbons, the USV may use
various sensors to identify the hydrocarbons. For example, the
hydrocarbon detection sensors may involve using ultraviolet
technology to view the water's surface from some distance above the
surface to confirm the presence of waterborne liquid hydrocarbons.
See, e.g., Chase et al., 2010. Alternatively, the sensors may
include flow-through optical sensors that are used to confirm the
presence of oil in the water. See, e.g., Dalgleish et al., 2013. As
yet another, the USV may have active ultra-violet components that
are configured to excite aromatic compounds in hydrocarbons and to
detect resulting fluorescence emissions from the surface of the
slick. The USV may also have visible and infrared light cameras
that can be used to investigate larger areas around the USV to
locate slicks.
Once the waterborne liquid hydrocarbons are verified, then the USV
enters into "waterborne liquid hydrocarbon sampling mode". In this
mode, the USV deploys one of its sampling devices and initiates a
new trajectory, such as a sampling pattern. The sampling pattern
may have a more narrow radius, as compared to the hydrocarbon
search radius (about 10 m radius as compared to 500 m radius) and
may be performed at a slower speed (e.g., approximately 1 m/s)
spiral. This sampling pattern may be performed for a time period of
about half an hour. The spiral increases in radius by about 5 m for
every rotation. The spiral expands to perhaps a 75 m radius before
ending. Upon conclusion, the sampling material is spooled back into
the container, and the container is sealed shut. This sealing may
isolate the sampling material from other samples that are obtained
to lessen any contamination. Then, the USV may resume "waterborne
liquid hydrocarbon detection mode" or may enter "loitering mode."
As an example, after the USV collects a certain number of samples
(e.g., two or more samples) from the waterborne liquid
hydrocarbons, the UV may enter a "loitering mode" until further
instructions are provided. This prevents oversampling of waterborne
liquid hydrocarbons from a single location, which is not as
efficient with the sampling material.
FIG. 4 is a diagram 400 of an exemplary search pattern in
accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present techniques.
In this diagram 400, waterborne liquid hydrocarbons are identified
from remote sensing data as an oil slick 402. Based on
environmental conditions, the oil slick 402 may migrate to a
different location, as shown by oil slick 404. Based on the remote
sensing data, the USV may be directed to an initial waypoint 406 in
a "transiting mode". At the initial waypoint 406, if the USV does
not detect hydrocarbons, the USV may begin "waterborne liquid
hydrocarbon detection mode". That is, the USV may perform a spiral
search pattern 408, increasing in radius away from the initial
waypoint 406. As noted above, the hydrocarbon search radius may be
around 500 meter (m), with each subsequent radii increasing by
about 500 m per rotation, which is indicated by the scale 410. This
pattern 408 may continue until the USV detects hydrocarbons, as
indicated by the waypoint 412. At this waypoint 412, the USV enters
the "waterborne liquid hydrocarbon sampling mode". That is, the USV
begins a different search pattern, as noted above, to collect the
samples.
To collect samples, the UV (e.g., USV) may include various sampling
containers. For example, obtaining of the samples may be performed
with the UV having an assembly including 50 to 100 individual
sampling containers. Each sample container includes sampling
material that is deployed from the sample container onto the
surface of the water and then retrieved back into the sample
container. The hydrocarbons that contact the sampling material
adhere to the material, and then the sampling device is retrieved
back into the sampling container. The sampling material may be
TFE-fluorocarbon polymer screening fabric and may have a thickness
of about 0.1 millimeters (mm) to 0.7 mm, or more preferably about
0.3 mm. The sampling container may be sealed and
temperature-controlled for the duration of the USV deployment.
Further, as another example, if two or more unmanned vehicle are
used, one unmanned vehicle may be used to deploy the sample
containers and another unmanned vehicle may be used to retrieve the
sample containers. The deployment unmanned vehicle may perform
different search patterns to locate the hydrocarbons, as noted
above. Then, the other or retrieval unmanned vehicle may either use
the search pattern to identify the sample containers or may use the
locating techniques to obtain the sample containers.
FIG. 5 is a diagram of an exemplary sample container 500 in
accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present techniques.
In this sample container 500, sampling material 504 may be disposed
around a spool 502. The sampling material 504 may be attached to
the spool 502 at one end, while the other end of the sampling
material 504 may be attached to a buoyant weight 508. The buoyant
weight 508 may be adapted to float on the body of water to maintain
the sampling material 504 in contact with the surface of the body
of water. To control the distribution of sampling material 504, a
guide member 506 may be disposed between the spool 502 and the
buoyant weight 508. The spool 502 may dispense and retrieve the
sampling material 504 through the use of a motor and/or other
mechanism (not shown). Beneficially, by having the sampling
material 504 in an individual sample container, cross contamination
from different samples may be lessened.
As an example, the sampling material 504 may be deployed on a spool
502 that is about 12 centimeters (cm) wide. If the configuration
includes 50 to 100 individual sampling containers, each of the
individual sampling containers contains one such spool 502. The
spool 502 is actuated to activate the deployment and retrieval of
the sampling strip of the sampling material 504. The end of the
strip is weighted, such as the buoyant weight 508, so that tension
exists on the strip to ensure proper deployment down to the water's
surface (e.g., preventing the strip from being lifted and flapping
due to wind) and proper spooling upon retrieval (e.g., slack in the
line hinders smooth retrieval). The weight on the end of the strip
is buoyant, so that it does not cause the strip to sink below the
surface of the body of water. A metal guide-piece, such as guide
member 506, is also in place below the spool to aid in proper
spooling and to avoid snagging of the strip on the opening of the
sampling container during retrieval. The guide member may have
rounded edges to lessen scraping the hydrocarbons off of the
sampling material during retrieval. The guide member may also be
configured from two rollers. The guide member also prevents
twisting during spooling. The buoyant weight 508 may be configured
to not pass through the guide member to provide a stopping
mechanism for the spooling mechanism.
As may be appreciated, the sampling container may involve different
configurations. For example, the sampling container may be a
rectangular prism to maximize the packing density of the containers
and thus the quantity of samples onboard for a given space. The
bottom surface may be a swinging door that is opened and closed
using an electric motor that is housed outside of the sample
container. Actuators may be disposed outside of the sample
container to avoid contamination issues caused by lubricant oil,
etc. The door may swing open using a hinge at one end of the sample
container, such that the sample material may exit the sample
container using gravity. The door orientation may be configured to
prevent the door from interfering with the sample material as it is
deployed and retrieved (e.g., positioned at the end of the sampling
container that is near the front of the UV. When the door is
opened, it should open as wide as possible, so as to avoid
contacting or interfering with the sample material. The hinge
should be configured to lessen it as a source of sample
contamination, so the materials and lubrication should be carefully
considered here. The door should make a tight seal when it is
closed to isolate the sample material and oil sample from the
environment. The doors may be firmly sealed even in extreme sea
states where they are being rapidly accelerated and decelerated and
being struck by waves. The seal may preferably be air and water
tight. The door may also include a thermally insulating layer to
reduce heat loss to the environment. The motor should be IP66
certified, which certifies that the device is dust tight and can
prevent water ingress even while being washed down under high
pressure. The rugged operating environment makes this necessary.
The door and motor drive described are shown in FIGS. 6 and 7.
FIG. 6 is a diagram of an exemplary sample container configuration
600 having a motor drive for the door in accordance with an
exemplary embodiment of the present techniques. In this
configuration 600, the sample container 602 may include a sampling
material 604 may be disposed around a spool 606. Similar to the
discussion of FIG. 5, the sampling material 604 may be attached to
the spool 606 and use buoyant weight and guide member (not shown).
In this configuration 600, a door 608 is disposed at the end of the
sampling container adjacent to the body of water. The configuration
600 includes a first electric motor 610 that may be used to operate
the spool 606 and a second electric motor 612 that is utilized to
open and close the door 608. The first electric motor 610 is
utilized to operate the spool 606 to deploy and retrieve the
sampling material 604. The second electric motor 612 is utilized to
open and close the door 608, which may utilize a belt or chain 614
and pulleys 616 and 618.
FIG. 7 is a diagram of an exemplary sample container configuration
700 having a motor drive 710 and a spool 706 in accordance with an
exemplary embodiment of the present techniques. In this
configuration 700, the sample container 702 may include a sampling
material 704 that may be disposed around a spool 706. Similar to
the discussion of FIGS. 5 and 6, the sampling material 704 may be
attached to the spool 706 and use buoyant weight 707 and guide
member 708. The electric motor 710 may be used to deploy and
retrieve the sampling material 704 from the spool 706. The electric
motor 710 is configured to engage with a shaft and a first gear
712, which is configured to engage with the second gear 714. The
second gear 714 may be configured to engage with a shaft that
coupled to the spool 706.
Through this coupling, the electric motor 710 deploys and retrieves
the sampling material 704. The spool 706 may be rotated by the
electric motor 710 to deploy and retrieve the sampling strip of
sampling material 704. The actuator may be placed outside of the
container to avoid contamination, and may be placed on top of the
sampling container 702 to reduce the footprint of the sample
container 702. The rotational motion may be transmitted to the
spool axle via gears 712 and 714 on the outside of the sample
container 702. The electric motor 710 and gears 712 and 714 may or
may not need to have additional housing around them. The other end
of the spool axle may be seated in a bearing hole to provide free
rotation, while holding the axle in place. The motor 710 may be
dust tight and can prevent water ingress even while being washed
down under high pressure (e.g., IP66 certified). In this
configuration 700, the sample container's opening through which the
spool axle extends may also be sealed. That is, it should be an
airtight and water-tight seal to avoid any contamination.
Additionally, the sealing material 704 may be considered as it
could be a source of sample contamination. While it may be
preferred to not use any lubrication for the spool axle (as shown
in FIG. 7), it should be configured to lessen any sample
contamination from the lubrication.
To enhance the operations, the spool may be configured to easily
install and remove from the sample container. That is, the sample
containers may be configured to provide easy removal and insertion
for shipment to the lab. Accordingly, the configuration may include
a design that provides a spool gear that is easy to remove (e.g.,
with a pin or nut securing the gear into the system). After the
gear is removed, then the spool axle may be pulled out of the
sample container, which results in the spool being free to drop out
of the sampling container. A new spool may then installed by
placing it into the container, sliding the axle, which may be
keyed, through the spool, and securing the gear back on to lock the
spool in place. As an example, the sampling container may be
approximately 16 cm in width, 4 cm in depth, and 11 cm in height
with an additional 5 cm of height below the container to
accommodate the swinging door.
The sample containers may be arranged into different
configurations. For example, the sampling containers may be
arranged and mounted within the sampling assembly, as shown below
in FIG. 8. FIG. 8 is a diagram of an exemplary sample assembly 800
having multiple sample containers 802a to 802n in accordance with
an exemplary embodiment of the present techniques. In this
configuration 800, the sample assembly may be a rectangular prism
that includes from 50 to 100 sampling containers 802a to 802n,
which are also rectangular prisms. The sampling assembly may have a
height 806, a width 808 and depth (not shown), which provide the
dimensions of the rectangular prism. As an example, the sampling
assembly 800 may be approximately 0.6 meters (m) in width, 11 cm in
depth, and 1 m in height. This sampling assembly of such dimensions
may include 75 sampling devices. The diagram is a view of the doors
for the sampling containers 802a-802n, which may have one or more
electric motors to open and close the doors and deploy and retrieve
the sampling material from within the individual sampling
containers 802a-802n. The sampling assembly may include additional
space above for the motor and other components (e.g., which may be
housed inside an enclosure) and have an additional space of about 5
cm of height below the container to accommodate the swinging door
for the sampling containers 802a-802n.
The actual size of the sampling assembly depends largely upon the
UV platform. In the sampling assembly, a gap around each sampling
container (e.g., between 2 cm to 4 cm or about 3 cm) except where
the containers are adjacent and connected to each other in the
fore-aft direction. The fore and aft walls of the sample containers
may be a shared piece of metal plate. The 3 cm gap may be utilized
to accommodate the gear and belt drives on either side of the
sampling containers and also to provide mechanism to flow a cooling
fluid between the sampling containers. The temperature control
components are explained further below.
To collect samples, the sampling assembly may be disposed on an
unmanned vehicle, as shown in FIG. 9. FIG. 9 is a diagram of an
exemplary unmanned vehicle 900 in accordance with an exemplary
embodiment of the present techniques. In this diagram, the sampling
assembly 906 is disposed on an unmanned vehicle 904, which includes
various components 902, which may be utilized for communication,
sampling, hydrocarbon detection and/or identification, power
distribution and/or propulsion along with managing autonomous
operations, if necessary. The sampling assembly 906 may include
various individual sample containers that are used to deploy the
sampling material onto the surface of the body of water. The
sampling material, which may be a strip, is sized so that
approximately 1 m of the sampling material is in contact with the
water's surface during sampling. The strip is then dragged through
the waterborne liquid hydrocarbons based on the sampling pattern
before being retrieved back into the sampling container, which is
subsequently sealed shut.
Further still, the materials of construction of the UV and sampling
assembly are evaluated to consider any possible contamination
effects they may have on the obtained samples. Adequate freeboard
may be preferred, so that the sampling material is not lifted by
waves into the bottom surface of the sampling assembly during
sampling operations. The configuration of the UV may be such that
sampling may occur without the sampling material coming in contact
with any part of the vessel.
Further, the unmanned vehicle 900 may also include heating and
cooling components 908 to maintain the temperature of the samples
within a specified range. For example, the sample temperatures may
be maintained above -10.degree. C. to prevent irreversible
crystallization of waxes. Further, if the sample temperatures are
too high, bacteria may degrade the sample. Accordingly, heating and
cooling components 908 may maintain the samples at temperatures
between about -10.degree. C. and 10.degree. C., temperatures
between about -5.degree. C. and 10.degree. C., and/or temperatures
between about 4.degree. C. and 5.degree. C., which may be specified
in ASTM D4489-95.
The cooling and heating components 908 may include various modules
to operate. For example, the cooling and heating components 908 may
include a mobile temperature management unit that maintains a heat
transfer fluid. Exemplary mobile temperature management units are
commercially available and utilized for the transport and
temperature control of biological samples. In this configuration,
the heat transfer fluid should be configured to not freeze or
vaporize in expected temperatures that the UV may be exposed to
during operations. The heat transfer fluid should also be
compatible with the materials with which it is in contact. The
temperature of the heat transfer fluid is controlled inside of the
mobile temperature management unit, and it is circulated inside of
the sampling assembly to heat or cool the sample containers,
keeping their temperatures in the acceptable range.
As an example, FIG. 10 is a diagram 1000 of an exemplary sample
assembly 1002 and cooling and heating component 1004 in accordance
with an exemplary embodiment of the present techniques. In this
diagram 1000, the sampling assembly 1002 is disposed below (e.g.,
closer to the body of water than) the cooling and heating component
1004. The cooling and heating component 1004 may include various
conduits, temperature control sensors, heat transfer fluid and
pumps that are utilized to maintain the sample containers within
the sample assembly 1002 within a predetermined temperature range.
As an example, the sampling assembly 1002 may have a depth 1006 of
0.15 m, while the cooling and heating component 1004 may have a
depth of 0.6 m. The length and width may vary, but may be similar
to the sampling assembly. As noted above for the sampling assembly
example, the cooling and heating component 1004 may have a length
that is 1 m and the width is 0.6 m, which may be disposed over the
sampling assembly.
To maintain the temperature, the heat transfer fluid may be
circulated, as shown by arrows 1010 and 1012, using a small pump
located inside of the cooling and heating component 1004 or
elsewhere. For cold environments, the heat transfer fluid may be a
water-based fluid combined with an anti-freeze agent to prevent ice
from forming. For warmer environments, the heat transfer fluid may
include water and/or seawater. Other fluids and additives are also
considered and combined with the heat transfer fluid, as may be
appreciated. The heat transfer fluid does not have to completely
fill the areas of the sampling assembly outside of the individual
sampling containers. That is, an air gap may be provided in the top
portion of the sampling assembly, so that any electric motors are
not submerged. Further, the sampling assembly may be
compartmentalized to help contain the heat transfer fluid below a
certain level to reduce the amount of contact with the electric
motors.
To manage the temperature, one or more thermocouples may be
disposed in each sample container or adjacent to the sample
containers to monitor the sample temperatures. This information may
be stored (e.g., logged) and/or communicated to a control unit that
may adjust the temperature by changing setting in the cooling and
heating component 1004.
To provide quality assurance, a camera may be utilized to capture
different aspects about the operations. That is, the camera may
record interesting time segments of sampling operations in video or
snapshot form. The camera may specifically record the deployment
and/or sampling operations for each sample.
In one or more configurations, the samples may be processed on the
UV via measurement components. Alternatively, the samples may be
transported to another location for analysis. The analyses may
include chemical and isotopic analysis (e.g. mass spectrometry
and/or fluorometry and/or analysis for noble gases and
isotopologues), sediment analysis, biological analysis (e.g. DNA
analysis), and/or other methods. See, e.g., Chase, C. R., Lyra, G.,
& Green, M. (2010, October). Real-Time Monitoring of Oil Using
Ultraviolet Filter Fluorometry. Sea Technology.
In one or more embodiments, the UV may be an unmanned surface
vehicle and/or an unmanned airborne vehicle. If the UV is an
unmanned surface vehicle, it may be a catamaran-style USV that is
less than 7 m long and travels at speeds less than 7 kn. The USV
may be transported in a standard 20 foot container from a
deployment vessel. It may be deployed from a variety of vessels of
opportunity or from the shore locations. A transit speed of around
31/2 kn may be sufficient for some applications, while faster
travel may be preferred to reduce the time between satellite
acquisition and reaching a target location or attaining sufficient
coverage of the target location.
The UV may be configured to perform the search and sampling
patterns described in the previous paragraphs in an automated
manner and/or via remote operations. For example, the UV may be
deployed from a vessel performing other operations (e.g., seismic
survey). Then, the UV may be launched into the body of water when
target waterborne liquid hydrocarbons are identified. The
operations of the UV may be controlled from the vessel by an
operator. After deployment, the UV is controlled from the vessel
from which it was launched or from another shore-based location.
The UV is then retrieved from the body of water by the same vessel
from which it was deployed or from shore or another vessel.
Data from the sensors onboard the UV may be communicated back to
operators via communication equipment (e.g., Iridium satellite) and
stored and analyzed in a database, while the UV is deployed.
Commands may be sent to the UV from the shore or from a manned
vessel. While the communications may be based on a variety of
technologies, the UV may use an Iridium satellite link to provide
the primary means for communicating navigation and sensor
measurements to the remote operator. The same system may also be
used as the primary means of relaying commands to the vehicle. When
higher bandwidth is required, perhaps during sampling activities,
the RUDICS satellite communication system may be used.
In additional embodiments, the UV is also equipped with additional
sensors to further verify hydrocarbon seeps. For example, the
sensors include a UV-flourometer(s) to screen the potential
waterborne liquid hydrocarbons for possible anthropogenic
contamination (e.g., diesel fuel) or other substances that indicate
that the waterborne liquid hydrocarbons are not the result of a
seep (e.g., meaning it is not of interest as it does not indicate
the presence of a natural seep). Further, the detection of
thermogenic hydrocarbons emanating from seafloor seeps, either at
macro- or micro-scale is utilized to detect or confirm whether
hydrocarbon seeps are present at these locations. Measuring
concentrations of thermogenic methane, ethane, propane, butane,
etc., is performed via compact high-sensitivity mass spectrometers
and laser flourometer (for aromatic compounds generally associated
with hydrocarbon liquids), which may be utilized onboard or
deployed from the UV.
Additionally, these sensors within an UV can be used to map
chemical or physical anomalies around waterborne liquid
hydrocarbons to locate the potential seep vents or discharge
locations. The analysis of the waterborne liquid hydrocarbons may
provide information based on biological and chemical sampling of
fluids, gases, and sediments. In particular, this method may
include determining the presence of a potential seep or another
source for the slick and estimating information, such as depth,
type, quality, volume and location, about a subsurface hydrocarbon
accumulation from the data from the sample. As an example, the
present techniques involve the use of three independent
technologies: clumped isotope geochemistry, noble gas geochemistry,
and microbiology, which are combined and integrated as a workflow
to enhance hydrocarbon exploration success. These three methods may
provide information about the depth, fluid type (oil vs. gas) and
quality, and volume of subsurface hydrocarbon accumulations to be
determined from the sampling and analysis of hydrocarbon seeps
(e.g., offshore and/or onshore). That is, the method may integrate
existing and new biological and geochemical indicators to provide
insights in opportunity identification. In addition, the
integration of these biological and geochemical indicators with
geological/geophysical contextual knowledge should further provide
enhancements to hydrocarbon opportunity identification. These other
techniques are described in Intl. Patent Application Pub. Nos.
2013119350; 2013148442; and 201307030, which are each incorporated
herein in its entirety. Accordingly, in some embodiments, the
present techniques may include performing one or more of microbial
genomics; noble gas geochemistry and clumped isotope geochemistry
of hydrocarbon phases from the sample. These techniques may be
utilized to determine and/or estimate the presence and information,
such as volume, depth, type, quality, and location of the
subsurface hydrocarbon accumulation.
In one or more embodiments, the unmanned vehicle may include other
components to perform the operations. For example, the UV may
include a housing that encloses one or more of a communication
component and associated antenna, a sample measurement component,
another measurement component, a power component and a propulsion
component. The modules and components may be provided power from
the power component via power distribution lines (not shown).
Similarly, the different modules and components may communicate
with each other via communication lines. The central power and
communication lines may be enclosed to be isolated from the
environment and to manage the operation in an efficient manner.
To operate, the power component may be utilized to supply power to
the propulsion component. Further, the power component may provide
power to the communication component and the other measurement
components. The power component may include a battery, motor and/or
solar powered equipment. The batteries may provide power via the
power distribution lines, which may include one or more cables, as
an example. The motor may turn fuel into power, for example, by
turning a generator, which may be used to power the modules and
components and also to recharge the batteries.
The communication component may be utilized to exchange information
between the different modules and components and/or the command
unit via the communication lines and the communication antenna. The
communication component may utilize the communication lines to
handle the exchange of information, such as measured data, status
indications or other notifications between the modules, such as the
sample measurement component, the other measurement components, the
power component and the propulsion component. The communication
lines may include a bus, Ethernet cable, fiber optics or other
suitable physical connection. In an alternative embodiment, the
communication between modules may be via a wireless connection.
Similarly, the communication protocol may be any protocol known to
those skilled in the art. The communication components may include
communication equipment that is utilized to communicate with one or
more of other unmanned vehicles, marine vessels and/or command
units. The communication equipment may utilize technologies, such
as radio, cellular, wireless, microwave or satellite communication
hardware and software.
To sample and measure the waterborne liquid hydrocarbons, the
sample measurement component may be utilized to measure various
features of the waterborne liquid hydrocarbons. Examples of
different measurement components and the associated techniques to
obtain measurements are noted further above.
The UV may include other features as well. For example, the UV may
include an obstacle avoidance system to avoid other vessels, ice,
and other hazards.
As an example, FIG. 11 is a block diagram of a computer system 1100
that may be used to perform any of the methods disclosed herein. A
central processing unit (CPU) 1102 is coupled to system bus 1104.
The CPU 1102 may be any general-purpose CPU, although other types
of architectures of CPU 1102 (or other components of exemplary
system 1100) may be used as long as CPU 1102 (and other components
of system 1100) supports the inventive operations as described
herein. The CPU 1102 may execute the various logical instructions
according to disclosed aspects and methodologies. For example, the
CPU 1102 may execute machine-level instructions for performing
processing according to aspects and methodologies disclosed
herein.
The computer system 1100 may also include computer components such
as a random access memory (RAM) 1106, which may be SRAM, DRAM,
SDRAM, or the like. The computer system 1100 may also include
read-only memory (ROM) 1108, which may be PROM, EPROM, EEPROM, or
the like. RAM 1106 and ROM 1108 hold user and system data and
programs, as is known in the art. The computer system 1100 may also
include an input/output (I/O) adapter 1110, a communications
adapter 1122, a user interface adapter 1124, and a display adapter
1118. The I/O adapter 1110, the user interface adapter 1124, and/or
communications adapter 1122 may, in certain aspects and techniques,
enable a user to interact with computer system 1100 to input
information.
The I/O adapter 1110 preferably connects a storage device(s) 1112,
such as one or more of hard drive, compact disc (CD) drive, floppy
disk drive, tape drive, etc. to computer system 1100. The storage
device(s) may be used when RAM 1106 is insufficient for the memory
requirements associated with storing data for operations of
embodiments of the present techniques. The data storage of the
computer system 1100 may be used for storing information and/or
other data used or generated as disclosed herein. The
communications adapter 1122 may couple the computer system 1100 to
a network (not shown), which may enable information to be input to
and/or output from system 1100 via the network (for example, a
wide-area network, a local-area network, a wireless network, any
combination of the foregoing). User interface adapter 1124 couples
user input devices, such as a keyboard 1128, a pointing device
1126, and the like, to computer system 1100. The display adapter
1118 is driven by the CPU 1102 to control, through a display driver
1116, the display on a display device 1120. Information and/or
representations of one or more 2D canvases and one or more 3D
windows may be displayed, according to disclosed aspects and
methodologies.
The architecture of system 1100 may be varied as desired. For
example, any suitable processor-based device may be used, including
without limitation personal computers, laptop computers, computer
workstations, and multi-processor servers. Moreover, embodiments
may be implemented on application specific integrated circuits
(ASICs) or very large scale integrated (VLSI) circuits. In fact,
persons of ordinary skill in the art may use any number of suitable
structures capable of executing logical operations according to the
embodiments.
In one or more embodiments, the method may be implemented in
machine-readable logic, such that a set of instructions or code
that, when executed, performs automated sampling operations from
memory. That is, the UV may be configured to operate in an
autonomous mode. As an example, operating in an autonomous manner
may include navigating and sampling the potential waterborne liquid
hydrocarbons without the interaction of an operator. In such
configurations, the UV may include a control unit, which may be the
computer system 1100 as noted in FIG. 11. During the deployment,
the unmanned vehicle may navigate toward targeted locations or may
navigate along a specific search pattern. To navigate, the unmanned
vehicle may utilize navigation components, which may include one or
more propulsion components, one or more steering components and the
like. The one or more propulsion components may include a motor
coupled to one or more batteries and coupled to a propeller
assembly, via a shaft, for example, as is known in the art. The
propeller assembly may be utilized to move fluid in a manner to
move the unmanned vehicle relative to the body of water. The
navigation components may utilize sensors or other monitoring
devices to obtain navigation data. The navigation data may include
different types of navigational information, such as inertial
motion unit (IMU), global positioning system information, compass
information, depth sensor information, obstacle detection
information, SONAR information, propeller speed information,
seafloor map information, and/or other information associated with
the navigation of the unmanned vehicle. The deployment may also
include inserting certain equipment (e.g., certain monitoring
components) into the unmanned vehicle for use in sampling
operations. As an example, the deployment may include lowering the
unmanned vehicle from the deck of a marine vessel into the body of
water or dropping the unmanned vehicle into the body of water from
an airborne vehicle.
The control unit may manage the operations of the communication
components, sampling components, hydrocarbon detection and
identification components, power components and propulsion
components. The control unit may be configured to direct the
navigation components to follow a direct trajectory to a target
location and/or follow one or more search patterns. This may also
involve adjusting operational parameters and/or settings to control
the speed and direction. Further, the control unit may adjust the
operation of the hydrocarbon detection and identification
components. That is, the control unit may have the hydrocarbon
detection and identification components perform the detection
operations in a specific sequence. For example, the operations may
involve deploying the balloon or a UAV with detection equipment to
identify locations, then the flourometer and/or wavelength
detection components may be utilized. This configuration may
conserve power by having the long range detection components
utilized initially, while the other short range components are
utilized to verify the hydrocarbon location.
Further, the control unit may also control the sampling operations.
As noted above, the sampling operations may be controlled by the
control unit to obtain a certain number of samples, the duration
the samples are in contact with the hydrocarbons on the body of
water and other such operational aspects.
Illustrative, non-exclusive examples of systems and methods
according to the present disclosure are presented in the following
enumerated paragraphs. It is within the scope of the present
disclosure that an individual step of a method recited herein,
including in the following enumerated paragraphs, may additionally
or alternatively be referred to as a "step for" performing the
recited action.
A method for identifying hydrocarbons comprising: obtaining a
potential location of waterborne liquid hydrocarbons in a body of
water using remote sensing data; directing an unmanned vehicle to
the potential location; and obtaining a sample of the waterborne
liquid hydrocarbons with the unmanned vehicle.
The method, further comprising: performing remote sensing in a
survey area to identify the potential location of waterborne liquid
hydrocarbons.
The method, wherein the remote sensing technology is synthetic
aperture radar (SAR).
A method for identifying hydrocarbons comprising: transporting one
or more sample containers on an unmanned vehicle to a potential
location of waterborne liquid hydrocarbons in a body of water;
contacting sampling material from one of the one or more sample
containers with the waterborne liquid hydrocarbons; retrieving the
sampling material having adhered waterborne liquid hydrocarbons as
an obtained sample into one of the one or more sample containers on
the unmanned vehicle; and storing the obtained sample in the sample
container.
The method, wherein storing the sample comprises managing the
temperature within the one of the one or more sample containers on
the unmanned vehicle.
The method, wherein the temperature is maintained with the range
between about -10.degree. C. and about 10.degree. C.
The method, wherein obtaining the sample from the potential
waterborne liquid hydrocarbons comprises removing live microbes
from the obtained samples prior to determining whether the obtained
samples is associated with a hydrocarbon system.
The method, wherein the unmanned vehicle is an unmanned surface
vehicle (USV).
The method, wherein the unmanned vehicle is an unmanned airborne
vehicle (UAV).
The method, further comprising: determining whether the obtained
sample is associated with a hydrocarbon system.
The method, further comprising: using the determination to perform
hydrocarbon exploration operations.
The method, further comprising searching for waterborne liquid
hydrocarbons in the body of water from the potential location.
The method, wherein searching for waterborne liquid hydrocarbons
comprises: performing a large pattern search from the potential
location, wherein the large pattern search comprises detecting
hydrocarbons; if hydrocarbons are detected, performing a sampling
pattern search to obtain the sample; and if hydrocarbons are not
detected, determining whether to continue the large pattern
search.
The method, wherein searching for waterborne liquid hydrocarbons
comprises pumping surface compounds through a flourometer to
identify hydrocarbons.
The method, wherein searching for waterborne liquid hydrocarbons
comprises analyzing the surface of the body of water to detect
certain wavelengths to identify hydrocarbons.
The method, wherein searching for waterborne liquid hydrocarbons
comprises: deploying a balloon above the unmanned vehicle;
obtaining infrared and visible light images; and analyzing the
infrared and visible light images to identify hydrocarbons.
The method, wherein searching for waterborne liquid hydrocarbons
comprises: deploying a unmanned aerial vehicle above the unmanned
vehicle; obtaining infrared and visible light images with the
unmanned aerial vehicle; and analyzing the infrared and visible
light images to identify hydrocarbons.
The method, wherein searching for waterborne liquid hydrocarbons
comprises: deploying a unmanned aerial vehicle above the unmanned
vehicle; generating an ultraviolet light; obtaining images with the
unmanned aerial vehicle; and analyzing the ultraviolet images to
identify hydrocarbons.
The method, further comprising obtaining one or more images as the
sample is being obtained.
The method, further comprising: transporting one or more sample
containers on a deployment unmanned vehicle to a potential location
of waterborne liquid hydrocarbons in a body of water; contacting
sampling material from one of the one or more sample containers
with the waterborne liquid hydrocarbons; retrieving the sampling
material having adhered waterborne liquid hydrocarbons as an
obtained sample into one of the one or more sample containers on
the unmanned vehicle; and storing the obtained sample in the sample
container on the unmanned vehicle.
The method, wherein each of the one or more sample containers
comprises the sampling material disposed within the sample
container.
The method, wherein each of the one or more sample containers is
configured to: seal the sampling material within the sample
container if hydrocarbons are not detected; unseal the sample
container to provide interaction between the sampling material and
the waterborne liquid hydrocarbons in a body of water when
hydrocarbons are detected.
The method, wherein the sample container is configured to seal the
sample container after a set period of time once the sample
container has been unsealed.
The method, wherein the deployment unmanned vehicle is an unmanned
airborne vehicle.
The method, wherein the unmanned vehicle is an unmanned surface
vehicle.
The method, wherein the unmanned vehicle is configured to collect
the one of the one or more sample containers via a magnet.
The method, wherein storing the obtained sample comprises managing
the temperature within the one of the one or more sample containers
on the unmanned vehicle.
The method, wherein the temperature is maintained with the range
between about -10.degree. C. and about 10.degree. C.
A hydrocarbon identification system comprising: an unmanned vehicle
having a propulsion component, a communication component and a
sample measurement component, wherein the propulsion component is
configured to maneuver the unmanned vehicle, the sample measurement
component is configured to obtain one or more samples for the
waterborne liquid hydrocarbons and the communication component is
configured to communicate signals associated with the obtained
samples.
The system, wherein the unmanned vehicle is configured to be
controlled via remote control communications.
The system, wherein the unmanned vehicle is configured to be
autonomously operated.
The system, wherein the sample measurement component comprises a
sample assembly having a plurality of individual sampling
containers.
The system, wherein each of the sampling containers has a sampling
material disposed around a spool within the sampling container.
The system, wherein each of the sampling containers has buoyant
weight coupled to the sampling material.
The system, wherein each of the sampling containers has a guide
member disposed between the spool and the buoyant weight.
The system, wherein the sample measurement component comprises a
sampling electric motor configured to lower the sampling material
into the open and close a door for one or more of the sampling
containers.
The system, wherein the sample measurement component comprises a
door electric motor configured to open and close a door for one or
more of the sampling containers.
The system, wherein the sampling assembly has between 50 and 100
sampling containers.
The system, wherein the sampling material is TFE-fluorocarbon
polymer screening fabric.
The system, wherein the unmanned vehicle has a heating and cooling
component configured to maintain the temperature within each of the
sampling containers within a specified range.
The system, wherein the unmanned vehicle is an unmanned surface
vehicle (USV).
The system, wherein the unmanned vehicle is an unmanned airborne
vehicle (UAV).
The system, wherein the unmanned vehicle has a control unit
configured to communicate with the propulsion component to perform
a large pattern search to detect hydrocarbons in an automated
manner.
The system, wherein the unmanned vehicle has a control unit
configured to communicate with the propulsion component to perform
a large pattern search to detect hydrocarbons in an automated
manner.
The system, wherein the unmanned vehicle has a hydrocarbon
detection component configured to identify hydrocarbons.
The system, wherein the hydrocarbon detection component comprises a
flourometer and a pump, wherein the pump is configured to obtain
surface compounds and pass the surface compounds to the flourometer
to identify hydrocarbons.
The system, wherein the hydrocarbon detection component comprises a
receiver configured to receive images from the surface of the body
of water; and analyze the images to identify certain wavelengths
associated with hydrocarbons.
The system, wherein the hydrocarbon detection component comprises a
balloon having an infrared and visible camera and configured to:
obtain infrared and visible light images from the surface of the
body of water; and an analyzer configured to determine hydrocarbons
from the infrared and visible light images.
The system, wherein the unmanned vehicle has a camera configured to
obtain one or more images as one or more samples are obtained.
The system, further comprising a deployment unmanned vehicle having
a deployment propulsion component, a deployment communication
component, a sample deployment component and a deployment
measurement component, wherein the deployment propulsion component
is configured to maneuver the deployment unmanned vehicle, the
deployment measurement component is configured to identify
waterborne liquid hydrocarbons, the sample deployment component is
configured to deploy a sample container into the identified
waterborne liquid hydrocarbons, and the deployment communication
component is configured to communicate signals associated with the
operation of the deployment unmanned vehicle.
The system, wherein the sample container comprise a canister having
the sampling material disposed within the canister.
The system, wherein the sample measurement component is configured
to retrieve the sample container.
The system, wherein the unmanned vehicle has a heating and cooling
component configured to maintain the temperature within the
sampling container within a specified range.
The system, wherein the sample container is configured to: seal the
sampling material within the sample container if hydrocarbons are
not detected; unseal the sample container to provide interaction
between the sampling material and the waterborne liquid
hydrocarbons in a body of water when hydrocarbons are detected.
The system, wherein the sample container is configured to seal the
sample material within the sample container after a set period of
time once the sample container has been unsealed.
The system, wherein the deployment unmanned vehicle is a deployment
unmanned airborne vehicle.
The system, wherein the unmanned vehicle is an unmanned surface
vehicle.
The system, wherein the unmanned vehicle is configured to collect
the sample container via a magnet.
It should be understood that the preceding is merely a detailed
description of specific embodiments of the invention and that
numerous changes, modifications, and alternatives to the disclosed
embodiments can be made in accordance with the disclosure here
without departing from the scope of the invention. The preceding
description, therefore, is not meant to limit the scope of the
invention. Rather, the scope of the invention is to be determined
only by the appended claims and their equivalents. It is also
contemplated that structures and features embodied in the present
examples can be altered, rearranged, substituted, deleted,
duplicated, combined, or added to each other. The articles "the",
"a" and "an" are not necessarily limited to mean only one, but
rather are inclusive and open ended so as to include, optionally,
multiple such elements.
* * * * *
References